Mediterranean Roasted Vegetable Galette

This savory Mediterranean-inspired roasted vegetable galette is elegant yet fuss-free and the perfect way to enjoy a summer vegetable bounty!

Do you have your garden in yet?  My dear hubby put ours in about a month ago and ever since then we’ve had one battle after another with critters!

So far, a cute and little but very bad bunny feasted on some tomato and pepper plants and an armadillo lumbered through my herb bed breaking off three of my basil plants.  Upcoming battles to come include squirrels taking bites out of tomatoes and raccoons stealing eggplant.  I’d love to hear your tips on how to manage these critters.  I keep trying to talk my husband into installing an electric fence, but he’s too nice of a guy to do that so I guess we will battle on!

This Mediterranean Roasted Vegetable Galette is a lovely way to enjoy some future garden abundance….. If the wildlife around you will allow it!

Different from a quiche or tart, a galette does not require a custard filling or any special pans.  It’s simply a rustic, versatile free form tart that can be filled with almost anything.  This version has eggplant, zucchini, red bell peppers and tomatoes.

Begin by cutting a small eggplant into cubes and placing it in a colander.  Toss with a generous amount of salt and allow it to drain for about 30 minutes.  Peeling the eggplant is optional, however, I prefer to leave the skin on because it contains a ton of antioxidants.

Salting the eggplant will help remove some of the mildly bitter taste it tends to have.  I don’t always salt and drain eggplant because I like that flavor.  For this dish, salting will soften it a bit so that when the vegetables are roasted, they all cook evenly.  If you’re salt-sensitive, skip that step and just start the eggplant 5 or 10 minutes ahead of the other vegetables.

When they are done, tilt the baking sheet slightly so excess oil and moisture drain away.  I prop one end of the baking sheet on a folded kitchen towel or two.  After a few minutes, gently toss the vegetables with garlic and basil.  Season to taste with salt and black pepper then place in the crust.  (I don’t season before roasting as the eggplant was salted and don’t want to oversalt.)

If you have a favorite pie crust recipe, by all means use it.  My mother was a pie crust GENIUS but apparently the trait skips a generation because I use refrigerated pie crust here.  (Learning to make the perfect pie crust IS on my bucket list!)

Bake the galette on parchment paper which has been sprinkled with cornmeal to keep the pastry from sticking to your baking sheet.

Let’s eat!

Mediterranean Roasted Vegetable Galette

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Prep Time 30 min

Cook Time 50 min

Total Time 1 hr 20 mins

Serves 4

This Mediterranean-inspired roasted vegetable galette is elegant yet fuss-free!

Ingredients

• 1 small eggplant (just under 1 pound), cubed
• Salt
• 2 medium Roma tomatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 small zucchini (total 12 ounces), cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 medium red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for brushing pastry
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large sprig fresh basil, thinly sliced
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Cornmeal
• 1 roll (1/2 package) refrigerated pie crust
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided

Directions

Place cubed eggplant in a colander.  Toss eggplant with approximately 2 teaspoons salt.  Let drain 30 minutes.  Pat dry with paper towels.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Place eggplant, tomatoes, zucchini and red bell pepper on a large baking sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat.  Roast until beginning to brown and just becoming tender, approximately 20 minutes.  (Keep in mind they're going to cook again in the galette.)

Tilt baking sheet slightly so that excess oil and water drains away and allow to cool.  Toss vegetables with garlic, basil, salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Sprinkle a light layer of cornmeal over the parchment paper.

Unroll the pie crust onto the prepared parchment paper.  Sprinkle half of the cheese over the pastry, leaving a 3-inch border.  Place vegetable mixture onto the pie crust, leaving a 3-inch border.  Fold the dough over the vegetables, overlapping as necessary to partially cover the filling.  (Should have a rustic appearance.)

Brush the pastry with olive oil.  Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until crust is golden.  Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese.  Cut into wedges and serve.

by Carol | From A Chef's Kitchen

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